From Swiss Info:MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russia announced plans on Sunday to revive its once-mighty navy by building several aircraft carriers and upgrading its fleet of nuclear submarines in the coming years.
Russia's power at sea is a shadow of the formidable Soviet navy which challenged U.S. military dominance in the Cold War. But, with a strong economy now from booming oil exports, it is seeking to raise its profile on the world stage by modernizing the armed forces.
Russia will build five or six aircraft carrier battle groups in the near future, RIA news agency quoted Navy Commander Vladimir Vysotsky as telling Navy Day festivities in St Petersburg, the second city.
"We call this a sea-borne aircraft carrier system which will be based on the Northern and Pacific fleets," Vysotsky said. "The creation of such systems will begin after 2012."
Read more ....My Comment: The idea that Russia will have 5 carrier groups in the next decade is pure fantasy. It takes years to build one carrier group, and just as long to train the thousands who will maintain such a fleet. Russia is now suffering from a demographic implosion with low birth rates, high mortality rates, and more pressing security and defense needs. Their resources are not going to go into developing carrier fleets.
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